Blues School Gives Lessons in Attitude With Its Music

CHICAGO —  All you need to know to get into the Chicago Blues Ensemble is how to pluck out a couple of chords and sing in the shower.

By the end of an eight-week course, students are transformed into toe-tapping, hard-playing blues performers with dark glasses and a new attitude. They are ready for their final exam--in a local bar.

“Blues is the people’s music,” said Jon Spiegel, one of the ensemble’s directors. “If you can plant the seed of obsession, then it’s really great. After that, you just stand back and steer.”

Some students bring in violins or dulcimers, but most favor guitars, pianos, basses and harmonicas. Everybody has to sing a solo before they are through, and the lessons teach more than music, Spiegel said.

“You can see the change in the students,” he said. “They first come in wearing Oxford shirts, and by the end of the eight weeks they’re wearing sharkskin suits and wide ties.”

The program is offered by the Old Town School of Folk Music. Typically, about 45 students of varying experience levels work in small groups. Most take music lessons during the week and meet each Wednesday to apply the theories they have learned.

“You get a lot out of playing with other people of all levels and from all walks of life,” said George Minkel. “I’ve been a closet player for years. So this is wonderful.”

Directors help students develop the best group sound, while focusing on the emotional extremes that are the root of the blues, Spiegel said.

“Play an angry note,” Spiegel told a bass player during one of the Wednesday night sessions. The student answered with a screeching sound that bounced off the walls and echoed through the room.

“Now, play one that’s real sublime,” Spiegel said. The responding tone wafted mellowly around the room.

The group then played a rendition of the blues standard “Crossroads,” with Rich Yeater, a mild-mannered computer consultant, pounding the piano keys and belting out the lyrics.

“It’s the first time I’ve done this,” he said. “It’s exciting, very different and a lot of fun. Playing with a group forces you to be more disciplined.”

Final exams take place in a local bar where the groups take the stage during an open microphone night.

“The best thing about this class is that, while they probably won’t be the best group up there, they definitely won’t be the worst,” Spiegel said.

Some of the ensemble groups go on to perform regularly, but few are willing to quit their day jobs for life in Chicago’s smoky blues clubs.

“Well, the option’s always open,” said Kevin Hauser, a 35-year-old train conductor and guitar player. “I’ll wait to see if the audience wants an encore after our first session.”